Trump at event commemorating October 7
Trump at event commemorating October 7REUTERS/Marco Bello

US President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday gave an interview to NBC News in which he commented on the ceasefire and hostage release deal, which was approved by the Israeli government early Saturday morning.

Asked how confident he was that the hostages would be released, Trump replied, “Well, we’re going to see very soon, and it better hold.”

He also said he told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “Just keep doing what you have to do. You have to have — this has to end. We want it to end, but to keep doing what has to be done.”

Trump said he would be meeting with Netanyahu “fairly shortly” but would not provide more details.

Trump also talked about how his administration plans to make sure the ceasefire holds, saying it will be by “good government.”

“Respect. The United States has to get respected again, and it has to get respected fast. But respect is the primary word that I use,” he told NBC News. “If they respect us, it will hold. If they don’t respect us, all hell will break out.”

In early December 2024, Trump became personally involved in the issue of the hostages held in Gaza when he threatened that there would be "all hell to pay" if the hostages are not freed by the time of his inauguration on January 20.

Trump has repeated that threat multiple times in the weeks since. This past Thursday, before the deal was officially signed in Qatar, Trump again stressed the urgency of finalizing the agreement before his inauguration on Monday.

“We changed the course of it, and we changed it fast, and frankly, it better be done before I take the oath of office,” Trump stated during a podcast interview with Dan Bongino.

“We shook hands, and we signed certain documents, but it better be done,” he added.